Town 'avoided' because of accessibility issues

Accessibility difficulties are affecting how people try and get around St Peter Port for shopping and other activities, people have told the BBC.

In shops, a lift in the town's Boots store has been out of action for a period of time, and an accessible changing room in New Look was being used for storage. Both companies said the situations were being addressed.

The Guernsey Retail Group (GRG) said stores should "regularly review their accessibility measures".

Some people also said they avoided parts of the town centre because some of its cobbled streets were steep. The States, which is responsible for streets, has been approached for a comment.

Parents said the lift problems in Boots meant they struggled to access the top floor of the store, where the children's department was located.

Bee Smith, 24, said she has had to carry her six-month-old daughter Mabel up the stairs in a pushchair with the help of her fiancé in the past.

She said: "Their lift hasn't been working for over a year now. It was meant to be fixed in November."

Boots told the BBC it "hoped to have it working following scheduled safety inspections" this week.

It added it was "committed to providing an inclusive shopping environment for all our customers and we apologise for the inconvenience caused while the lift at our St Peter Port store has been under repair".

New Look was contacted by the BBC after it was highlighted its accessible changing room was being used for storage.

The company said: "The accessible changing room in the store was temporarily used to hold storage, but it is very much back in operation and available to customers.

"Measures are in place to ensure this changing room remains available going forward."

The GRG said it would "encourage all stores to regularly review their accessibility measures and wider customer experience to ensure that local businesses can best meet the needs and expectations of all members of our community".

Gordon Tostevin, 95, said he gave town a miss because of difficulties navigating cobbled streets.

The stones, many handcrafted hundreds of years ago from local granite and sea-rounded stones, form a piece of island heritage.

Tostevin said he appreciated the beauty of them, but added he believed they should be replaced to improve accessibility.

He said: "It's an old town and it's got this character, but you have to step up at the pavement sometimes, you know; it's not an easy walk. It would be easy if it was flat."

"My wife didn't like the cobbles. They're lovely, but I think that to make it easier, it's going to spoil the beauty of the town, but I think it ought to be surfaced properly."

Bee Smith said she had also faced challenges when her daughter was in her pushchair.

"When she was a newborn and we used to take her on the cobbles, she'd be thrown around all over the place."

Smith's finance Clinton Millard, 34, said he thought accessibility options should be a "priority" but "because of the budget issues with GST [goods and sales tax], I'd rather the government not spend money on things [so more levies are not needed]."

He added: "Obviously this is not ideal for wheelchair-users and elderly people, as well as parents with buggies.

"Maybe there are certain things that you can just put in place, like sections of it that could be replaced with easier rolling sort of material.

"Town is essential for our economy, keeping the shops running.

"If people can't get to them, then they're going to lose out ultimately on business."

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